Extremely talented Academy Award nominated director who is adept in most phases of film making and is at home both in front of and behind the camera. Robbins grew up in New York City where he occasionally performed folk songs with his father and studied acting. His film debut came in Toy Soldiers (1983) and was quickly followed with appearances in Top Gun (1986), and starring roles in Bull Durham (1988), The Player (1992), The Shawshank Redemption (1994), and The Hudsucker Proxy (1994). Robbins received an Oscar nomination for directing Dead Man Walking (1995), which he also wrote and produced. The film starred Robbins' long-time companion, Susan Sarandon, and won her an Oscar though he went home empty-handed.